Environmental and health charities back a new report calling for Government to finally ban PFAS forever chemicals in non-essential uses.
A new report from the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) shows that the UK is already facing significant legacy contamination and that the longer action is delayed, the greater the environmental, health, and economic costs will be. Wildlife and Countryside Link (WCL) and members demand that the Government match the Committee's recommendations to stop the pollution at source and make polluters pay to clean up the contamination which already exists.
The charities warn that long-term risks to human health and the environment will continue to mount if the EAC’s recommendations aren’t listened to. Analysis by The Rivers Trust and Wildlife and Countryside Link shows that 94% of English rivers exceed proposed new EU standards for PFAS, 85% of them by at least 5 times. Levels in freshwater fish are on average 300 times higher than proposed safe levels for wildlife.
WCL supports the Committee’s recommendation to phase out all non-essential uses of PFAS in consumer products from 2027, to draw up a broad ban on PFAS as a group by end of the year, and to make polluters pay to clean up their damage.
Richard Benwell, Chief Executive of Wildlife and Countryside Link, said: “PFAS is an environmental and public health crisis hiding in plain sight. These toxic chemicals are contaminating our food, our homes, and every corner of our environment. PFAS are now found in the blood of almost everyone tested; no river has good chemical health; and fish have been found to have over 300 times the safe level. The Environmental Audit Committee is right to highlight the growing legacy of PFAS pollution in the UK, and the need for decisive action to tackle the mounting environmental, health, and economic burdens we face. Ministers must act now to hold polluters to account and phase out non-essential uses ahead of a broad ban on all PFAS. People and wildlife must be protected from irreversible harm.”
The environmental groups warn that PFAS contamination is already being detected at unsafe levels in UK rivers and wildlife, with serious consequences for ecosystems and public health. Without decisive action from the Government, pollution will only increase. Levels in freshwater fish are on average 300 times higher than proposed safe thresholds for wildlife, raising serious concerns about impacts on the food chain.
Dr. Shubhi Sharma from CHEM Trust said: “CHEM Trust welcomes the EAC report as a clear and timely warning that the UK government’s current approach to regulating ‘forever chemicals’ is not enough. With some PFAS being linked to serious health risks, stronger action is urgently needed. The UK government must go beyond monitoring and remediation efforts and focus on preventing PFAS pollution at the source, holding the polluters accountable through the polluter pays principle, and adopting a precautionary, group-based approach to regulation. Swift, decisive action, in line with the EU’s universal PFAS restriction, is urgently needed in the UK to protect both public health and the environment.”
Thalie Martini, CEO of Breast Cancer UK, said: “While there is enough evidence linking PFAS to serious health issues, including fertility problems and cancer, to warrant a precautionary approach, what's perhaps more concerning is that the majority have never been tested for their effects on human health. This means that we don’t know the full repercussions of our exposure to PFAS, which may build up in our bodies to form endless combinations of chemical cocktails. Some PFAS found in everyday items such as frying pans and school uniforms are endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), which affect our hormones, and to which children are particularly susceptible. To protect future generations, we must take bold preventative measures and ban these chemicals from consumer products.”
Hannah Evans, Project Manager at Fidra, said: “The EAC’s newly published report captures both the scale of the PFAS crisis we currently face, as well as the opportunities to address it if we act now. Used in everything from food packaging to pesticides, these ‘forever chemicals’ have contaminated soils, waterways, wildlife and communities across the UK. To truly protect public health and the environment, we must turn off the tap. We therefore greatly welcome the Committee’s recommendations for the government to restrict non-essential uses of PFAS without delay.”
Jamie Cook, CEO, Angling Trust, said: “The OEP is right to highlight that PFAS pollution is a growing and long-term threat to our rivers, wildlife and public health. PFAS pollution is not a future risk — it is already present in our rivers and seas and accumulating in fish that people catch and eat.
We welcome the clear call for stronger regulation and for polluters to be held accountable, but what matters now is delivery. Moving from substance-by-substance restrictions to group-based bans is an essential recommendation which we urge the Government to implement. We cannot afford further delay while contamination builds in our rivers and fish, making the problem more expensive and difficult to fix.”
Teyah Payne, Policy Lead at Planet Patrol, said: “Our rivers are already paying the price for decades of unchecked PFAS pollution. These chemicals do not disappear, they accumulate, moving through water, wildlife and ultimately into us. If we are serious about restoring river health, we must stop treating our rivers as dumping grounds and start protecting them as living systems.”
WCL is calling on ministers to urgently act on the recommendations to ban non-essential uses from 2027, draw up plans for a broad restriction, and make polluters pay for clean-up.
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